E3 2011 is getting closer, and the months leading up to the big show always bring with them rumor and speculation. Today's speculation: Nintendo is waiting until the big show to announce their next home console.Here's how the (pretty shaky) argument goes: Yesterday, a rumor was circulating that Nintendo was going to announce a price-drop for the Wii in the middle of May, in advance of E3. If Nintendo really is going to drop the price of the Wii well before the Electronic Entertainment Expo, it could be a signal that the company plans to drop the big announcement -- The Wii 2, let's say -- at E3. NEWS: Wii Play Sequel AnnouncedThis is pure speculation, of course, but it makes a certain amount of sense. Nintendo has never been into the long-lifetime console cycle that Sony and Microsoft are on, and announcing a new console now, when there are (presumably) still years left for both the 360 and PS3, would allow Nintendo to get a huge jump on the next "console cycle."Also: The sales of the Wii have been dipping steadily, as the PS3 and 360 change their focus to include families and "casual gamers," so it make sense that Nintendo would be looking ahead to the future.Here's how EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich put it, to Industry Gamers:"Most video game companies withhold their biggest announcements until E3 and if Nintendo chooses to announce a Wii price drop before their E3 press conference, they must have something much bigger to announce. There are very few announcements that would eclipse a hardware price cut." NEWS: Nintendo Files Patent For Wii LightAll of this, of course, depends on the accuracy of the report that Nintendo is cutting the price of the Wii in May, a scenario that is far from confirmed. Here's how Michael Pachter of Wedbush Securities put it. "There is no way that anyone outside of Nintendo Japan would know about this until print ads have to be submitted for retailers, probably at most three weeks prior to the cut. I don't believe that the source is right."I've put this rumor through G4's Rumor-Tron-4000 super-computer and have determined that there is a 35 percent chance that this rumor will turn out to be true.Source: Industry GamersAll of the best people are following Stephen Johnson's twitter feed. Also, email me if you wanna.Read more: http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/711846/wii-2-announcement-coming-at-e3/#ixzz1JXVQE7Rm
We reported on rumors of the Wii 2 (or Wii HD) earlier this morning, but since then the internet rumor-mill has cranked into high gear, and reports are coming in from different corners of the internet about the phantom system.According to Kotaku's sources, the Wii 2 will be "more powerful than current-gen systems." Game Informer says it has multiple sources who have confirmed that the Wii 2 will feature higher resolution than the Wii, although they were not ready to compare it to the 360 or PS3. According to Game Informer, Nintendo is already showing publishers the system. Supposedly, the release date is in late 2012, but the announcement will come during E3 this year, if not sooner.Nintendo has not commented, but when/if they get back to me, I'll clue you in to what they say.I am unconvinced. There are just too many unnamed sources and too little tangible evidence. If this were a court of law, I'd say the case is circumstantial. Sure, there's something to be said for the argument that sales are slipping, and it's about time for a new console, but really, we have no hard evidence -- only rumors of a price-drop, and some slightly saggy sales.Also: Last year around this time, (in fact, on April 2), the hive-mind of gaming was convinced that Sony was ready to announced the PSP 2 at E3. There was a ton of evidence (resumes listing the system, unnamed sources, analysts predictions, and more. Yet it wasn't announced at E3 at all. So I'm remaining cautious about the chances that the Wii 2 will be announced.Since we don't know whether Nintendo is offering up a new Wii at E3 this year, my question to you guys is: Other than HD graphics, which we obviously all want, what features and innovations would you like to see from a Nintendo console?All of the best people are following Stephen Johnson's twitter feed. Also, email me if you wanna.Read more: http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/711871/wii-2-more-rumors-swirl-around-nintendos-next-console/#ixzz1JXZx0UdR
The big story of the day on the internet is the rumor that Nintendo is planning to announce the existence of a brand new home console at E3 this year. There’s some circumstantial evidence that Nintendo plans to do this (unnamed sources, mainly) and while I’m not convinced there will be fire with the internet-smoke, if the Wii 2 is in development, I thought I'd put on my swami turban and make some predictions about the system. That way, when I turn out to be totally wrong, we'll have a record of it on the website.In a nutshell, given the success Nintendo created this generation, I think the company is unlikely to make any major changes to the business plan that made the Wii the fifth best-selling console of all time. After all, why would they? With that in mind, here’s some predictions that I think it’s logical to expect from the Nintendo Wii 2--if it exists at all--as well as few features and innovations you most likely won't see with the release of the Nintendo Wii 2.WHAT YOU MIGHT SEE IN THE NINTENDO WII 2 (OR WII HD) HD graphics : This is the most obvious improvement coming to the Wii 2. Since the Wii launched, one of gamers’ main complaints about the system has been the lack of HD graphics. That obviously didn’t matter to the masses of people who lined up at Toy R’ Us to pick one up for the kids on Christmas morning, but now the tastes and television sets of average people have caught up to the tech heads, so I predict any Nintendo console that is released in the future will feature highly defined graphics. Whether, as some are reporting, the mythical Wii 2 will be more powerful, graphically than current-gen systems, I think that depends on whether it’s possible for Nintendo to do it cheaply. Which brings us to... A Low Price: Nintendo destroyed all comers in this generation’s console war and they did it by providing a cheap console that kids like. They’d be crazy to offer up a system that is much more expensive than the Wii was originally. In other words: $250, tops. Backwards Compatibility: There’s no way Nintendo will alienate the millions of gamers worldwide who purchased Wii games, so look for the company to be the world’s console leader when it comes to backwards compatible games. A Hard-Drive: While Nintendo’s Wii does offer SD card storage, not providing a harddrive with the system really limits what consumers can do with it, so look for any potential Wii follow-up to feature a hard-drive. It probably won’t be a very big one, but it will exist and store the DLC you’ll get from… A Better Online Store: WiiWare just isn’t that good. Nintendo just has to look at the cash made by Sony and Microsoft on downloadables and will want to improve their online shopping experience beyond straight ports of NES games. A New Controller: The hallmark of the Wii is obviously the Wiimote and now that the other console manufacturers have taken motion control and surpassed the Wii in terms of accuracy and ease-of-use, look for Nintendo to come back with a newly re-vamped controller. While the Wii was cheap, extra controllers were pretty expensive, a trend you will see continue. Mario Games: A ton of 'em!WHAT YOU MIGHT NOT SEE IN THE NINTENDO WII 2 OR WII HD Focus On “Core” Gamers: Sorry hardcore gamers, Nintendo has left you behind and they are not going back. The company’s last console made 38 bajillion dollars by expanding the market, not by catering to the taste of hardcore gamers. That’s not their market anymore (if it ever was), and it never will be again. Focus On Online Play: Nintendo’s Wii has rudimentary online capabilities, but it almost feels like a begrudging afterthought. There’s little chance they’ll make their future system more complicated by including a lot of online interaction. Look at it this way: ParentS hate their kids talking to strangers online (maybe for good reason) so Nintendo isn’t going to make that their focus with their next console. Focus On Third Party Games: Part of the rumor surrounding the Wii 2 is that Nintendo is actively courting third-party publishers to create a strong library of non-Nintendo Wii HD (or Wii 2) games. I don’t think this sounds likely. After all, this generation, third-party games didn’t sell all that well on the Wii but first-party titles sold great. The top 13 selling Wii games are first-party and have huge numbers – Wii Play alone sold 27 million copies. Why would Nintendo actively court their own competition?What do you guys think of my predicitions?All of the best people are following Stephen Johnson's twitter feed. Also, email me if you wanna.Read more: http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/711876/nintendo-wii-2-the-next-nintendo-console-predictions/#ixzz1JYG4aAqJ
The timeframe makes sense, as late 2012 would be 6 years since the Wii's launch.
I just hope that the Wii 2's hardware would be up to par with the next gen Xbox and PS, so it can share more games with those systems.
Other than HD graphics, which we obviously all want, what features and innovations would you like to see from a Nintendo console?
The cat is out of the bag now. Game Informer previously stated a new Nintendo console was on the way, capable of 1080p resolutions. Later, IGN's sources claimed that the new console will be "significantly more powerful than the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and that Nintendo's intent is to recapture the hardcore market."Furthermore, CVG's sources say that not only have publishers already been briefed on the new console (surprise!) but that a new controller will feature a "built-in HD screen." As the new console will be backwards compatible with the Wii, one would guess that at least some motion functionality is to be expected.IGN also confirmed this backwards compatibility as well as that the all-new controller's screen will have touch capability. So it looks like Nintendo's latest hardware will have both the touch and the power.
Haha, there's no way they're going to put a high definition touch screen on a controller. That would cost a fortune.
